MLB Player News

Miller (elbow) threw a bullpen session Saturday and said afterward that he will face live hitters next week, Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

The 24-year-old has been out since May with an elbow injury, but he now has four bullpen sessions under his belt and will look to clear the next major hurdle in his recovery next week. Miller reiterated that his goal is to pitch for the A's again this season. He only made four starts before going down, but Miller impressed in that small sample (3.38 ERA, 0.98 WHIP) and looks like a potential long-term rotation piece for Oakland.

Wells, who is slated to start for Double-A Bowie on Saturday, will be given a little more rest between his next outings, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.

It sounds like Wells will go only three innings Saturday as the organization hits the reset button. Rest will be a big part of this reset process, as manager Brandon Hyde said Wells likely won't take the ball again in the minors until next weekend. One of the biggest surprises of the first half, Wells allowed 11 runs in nine innings across his first three starts out of the All-Star break. He still has a 3.80 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 111:33 K:BB over 113.2 innings in the majors this season.

Whitlock (elbow) threw live batting practice Saturday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Prior reports suggested that the 27-year-old could begin a rehab assignment this weekend, but the Red Sox instead opted to have him complete a live batting practice session beforehand. If Whitlock checks out fine Sunday, he could begin a rehab stint within the next week.

Eovaldi (forearm) said Saturday he was pain-free after playing catch from 75 feet, Jeff Wilson of RangersToday.com reports.

The 33-year-old made 40 throws and should continue building up his arm over the next few days before potentially returning to bullpen sessions. Manager Bruce Bochy said Friday that Eovaldi will be sidelined for at least another 2-to-3 weeks, but the right-hander's return to throwing with no issues is still an encouraging development for his outlook.

Montgomery (7-9) picked up the win Friday, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk over six-plus innings in a 6-2 victory over the Marlins. He struck out six.

The veteran southpaw gave up single runs in the first and second innings in his debut for the Rangers, but Montgomery settled in after that and cruised to his eighth quality start in his last 10 trips to the mound. He holds a 2.51 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 54:18 K:BB through 61 innings over that stretch, and with a potent Texas offense at his back, he could be headed for double-digit wins for the first time in his career. Montgomery lines up for a very juicy matchup in his next start, which is likely to come next week in Oakland.

Paxton (6-3) took the loss Friday, giving up four runs on nine hits -- including three home runs -- and two walks over five innings as the Red Sox fell 7-3 to the Blue Jays. He struck out four.

The southpaw was catching too much of the strike zone to begin the night, and Toronto hit three solo shots in the first two innings before Paxton was able to settle in. After an impressive run to begin the season after his mid-May debut, the 34-year-old has seen his numbers slip -- over five starts since the beginning of July, Paxton's stumbled to a 5.40 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 23:9 K:BB through 25 innings. He'll try to get back on track in his next outing, which is likely to come at home next week against the Royals.

Cortes (shoulder) was activated from the 60-day injured list ahead of his start Saturday against the Astros.

Cortes' rehab assignment was initially expected to include one more start before he joined the big-league rotation next week, but he will instead slot in this weekend. His most recent rehab start was July 28, in which he threw 49 pitches over four innings, so Cortes will probably need to be pretty efficient to go deep enough to qualify for the win in this one. He was expected to throw only 60 pitches in the rehab start that got nixed.

Manoah (3-8) picked up the win in Friday's 7-3 victory over the Red Sox, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks over 6.2 innings. He struck out five.

The right-hander continues to battle his control and consistency -- he hit another batter with a pitch, his fourth HBP in his last three starts, and he's issued multiple free passes in four straight outings -- but Manoah has at least looked a little more confident and aggressive on the mound since being sent down to the minors to reset. In five starts since his early July return, he's posted a 4.26 ERA and 1.38 WHIP, numbers that represent a vast improvement on the 6.36 ERA and 1.90 WHIP he stumbled to over his first 13 trips to the mound in 2023. Manoah will continue his efforts to regain his old form on the road next week in Cleveland.

Kremer wound up with a no-decision in the Orioles' 10-3 win over the Mets on Friday, giving up two runs on two hits and four walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out four.

The right-hander was handed an early 2-0 lead, but after five scoreless frames New York was able to get to Kremer in the sixth and he missed a chance to collect his 11th win or 11th quality start of the year. The four free passes also tied his season high, and he's walked multiple batters in five straight outings, posting a 4.00 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 23:14 K:BB through 27 innings over that stretch. He'll try to get back in the win column in his next start, likely to come at home next week against the Astros.

Gray will start Saturday against the Marlins.

This will be Gray's first time pitching since July 24, a span of 11 days in between outings. Since he last pitched, the Rangers acquired two new starters at the trade deadline, which altered the rotation pattern and may have resulted in the long layoff. Gray had a leg injury entering the previous start, so perhaps that was involved in the decision to give him so much time off. Gray has not won a game since June 2 and sports a 5.36 ERA over the eight starts since.